The Plucky Knitter

Our mother passed away on Wednesday. Please bear with me while I find my voice. I absolutely did not want to let another day go by without telling each and every one of you thank you….. for everything.

Your warm thoughts, encouragement and understanding during what has been a very emotional and draining month (after what can only be described as one extremely tough year) have been a bright spot during this dark time.

I don’t know that I have shared this before, but my mother was a bit of a knitter and really loved hearing about the knitting world (sadly, she had not been able to knit for some time due to her health). In the last couple weeks of her life Hayley and I cleared out the test knit cabinet and brought your lovely work to her so she could see and enjoy them. I cannot begin to tell you how much that meant to her. We would lay them out on her bed, model them and also put them on her so she could be decked out like we were. She just kept saying, ‘I want to wear a insert various knit wear here like you girls’. It made her so happy and gave us some comfort to be able to make her happy.

Hayley and I are back at the studio today and working out a plan so that all orders (all updates that were to ship the week(s) of 2/13, 2/20 and Plucky Classics) will ship by March 5. In fact, things will begin shipping this Friday and continue through March 5th. We both thank you so very much for your understanding and patience. I promise we will make it up to you very soon with a fun update, including free shipping and other stuff.

I’ll be on and off line a bit sporadically this week as we work hard to get up to speed here at the studio and while helping our Dad get things in order. But, please do not hesitate to contact me if you need any assistance at all.

Sounds scary doesn’t it?

It seems hard to believe that we’re already into the second month of the year, but I wanted to write because I’ve been reflecting recently on The Plucky Knitter and based on some of the questions and feedback I wanted to give you all some information, a check-in of sorts.

When I first began dyeing yarn in my lake cottage I never would have imagined five years later it would have become my full time job.  I feel truly blessed to be able to serve so many of you and to see what you create with my yarn.  Particularly in the past year there has been tremendous growth in the interest in my yarns, and with that I have done some deep soul searching to really think about what exactly is the heart and soul of ”Plucky”, what is the foundation of what I spend my days and nights doing, and the true reason is you.  I am truly dedicated to my customers and you are all one of the best parts of my job.  I enjoy knowing that when I dye up a particular shade of purple or green (and, of course, grey!) that I know which customer is going to gravitate towards that color. And, quite often, I create particular colorways knowing the interests of my customers.  I like knowing the names of your spouses and children, what projects you are knitting, etc. Because of that, the Plucky Knitter will remain what it started with  – a person dyeing yarn because she couldn’t find just the “right” shade, who takes great joy in sharing it with her customers – many of who have become friends.

So, to answer the many questions that have recently come up, the Plucky Yarn production is not going to dramatically increase and you won’t be able find it in stores all over the country (just a few carefully chosen yarn stores) because I feel strongly that my customers should know who is/has dyed the skein of yarn they are knitting with, and Hayley and I just don’t have the capacity to add many more stores to the line-up. My priority has always been, and will continue to be, my online customers. It is where I started and where my focus will remain. That all being said, I do think it is great fun to work with carefully chosen (and very few) brick and mortar stores and will continue to do so as I am able.

I have no intention of training multiple people how to dye my yarn. I’m just too much of a control freak about that and I feel it helps with consistency (as much consistency as you can have with the hand dyed process), and yes, because of that it can be a bit difficult to come by. However, I hope after reading this you can understand why.  While Plucky yarn cannot be available 24/7, please know that I have most certainly made steps to increase productivity – some that worked out really well (bringing my sister Hayley on board – she is just a passionate as I am about bringing you lovely yarn and creating a welcoming community) and some that were a little more finicky (Plucky Knitter Shop, I’m talking to you). However, please know that all of my business decisions are made with you in mind and I’m constantly working with my team to find new and better ways to serve you and get yarn to you more easily and often.

As many of you know, there was a shop update in my new store on December 31 which went completely awry.  I experienced a demand unlike any that had ever been seen before, and that combined with a buggy storefront created some logistical nightmares. To give you a better idea, the store oversold by more than double the amount of kits that was intended (then you multiply double the kits by three skeins per kit) – we suddenly had to dye a huge amount of yarn (that amounted to a weeks worth of extra dyeing). That would not have been insurmountable, however there was a previously scheduled trunk show two weeks later, and also some things going on behind the scenes.  Despite all of this I have done the very best I can to keep up with the hundreds of e-mails and Ravelry PMs that come in on a daily basis, but I know some may have slipped through the cracks, and for that I sincerely apologize.  As of last week, we have fulfilled every order that came through that day and hopefully everyone received their skeins.

On a very positive note, there are several exciting things on the horizon for 2012 and with the 12/31 update behind us I can truly move forward! Examples of this include, the Plucky Retreat, the debut of Plucky Feet (and several other new unique to Plucky blends), hopefully some more trunk shows around the country, some unique limited edition dye runs (varigated is back!), and kits and collaborations with some of your favorite designers.

Please know I do not take interest in my yarn for granted. I know that all of you have many options where you could spend your hard earned money and I am more grateful than you can imagine that on this long and often bumpy ride I have you all by my side.